Too much? Too late? News Flash!
Rating: PG-13Not mine ~ they're just borrowing my head for a playground! :0)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was about half-way to Woody's place when noticed the raindrops on the windshield. I turned on the wipers and saw a figure walking along the sidewalk. The person was hunched over, but I was pretty sure it was Woody. I slowed enough to take some time to verify that it was him, but not so much that I'd be accused of stalking if it wasn't. As the figure passed under a streetlight, there was no mistaking ~ it was Woody.
I pulled the Explorer over to the curb and cut the motor. I sat there for a minute, trying to gather my thoughts and steady my breathing. Finally, I pulled the keys from the ignition and opened the door.
"Woody!" He stopped briefly and I could see him stiffen at the sound of my voice. Then he began walking even faster than before. I slammed the door and began running towards him.
"Woody!" So much for steadying my breathing. "Woody, wait! Woody, please!"
Whether he meant me to or not, by running I quickly caught up with his in spite of his long, angry strides. I reached out a hand to touch his arm. "Woody? Please talk to me."
"About what, Jordan? You're not done making a fool of me?"
"Woody, I never meant. . ."
"Didn't your mother ever tell you about good intentions and what they pave?" He never missed a beat, just kept walking.
I stopped dead in my tracks. He'd hit a nerve. THE nerve. I felt tears instantly spring to my eyes, and they were not going to go away. Sensing that I wasn't beside him, he stopped and looked around, finding me standing there stunned. I quickly looked away to prevent him seeing how much he hurt me. But I wasn't fast enough. He saw the look of shock and pain on my face, and I could see the regret he truly felt flash onto his face.
"Jordan, I. . . Oh God, Jordan I didn't mean that."
"Yeah you did." I wasn't letting him off the hook that easily.
"What?"
"Makes sense. I hurt you, you got me back."
"No! Jordan, no. I did not mean to. . . I swear to you. It just slipped out." I just looked at him, still dumbfounded at his words. Whether he meant them to or not they'd cut deep. "Jordan, I am not into middle school games. If I meant to hurt you. . ."
"If that wasn't meant to hurt me, I wouldn't want to see what you'd do if you were trying."
"God, baby. I'm so sorry."
"Whatever." I didn't trust my voice for anything beyond that.
"Jordan, was there a reason you were following me?"
"Yeah. I wanted to talk with you. But. . ."
"So let's talk."
"I can't talk to you right now. I. . .I've got to go. Oh, and to answer your question, my mother was murdered before she got to tell me anything important like that."
I turned and ran back to the Explorer. I've never been so thankful for the remote lock thingy ~ no way could I have gotten the keys in the door on my own. Once inside, I used both hands to put the key in the ignition. The car started on the first crank, and I did at least manage to look and make sure nothing was coming before I made a completely illegal U-turn in the street. I didn't even care if I got caught.
I got to the Pogue and ran inside. Dad spotted me and came out from behind the bar. "Jordan, sweetheart, what's the matter?"
"Where's Nige? Where's Hector?"
"They went back to his place a few minutes ago. Hector was going to pay for a cab."
"I've got to get over there."
"Why? Baby, is Woody. . .?"
"I just need to see my two best friends. I. . .I can't deal with Woody right now. He. . .he said something too awful."
"What?" I could tell Dad was trying his hardest to figure out what Woody could have said that would have me hysterical.
"He asked me. . .he. . .he asked if my mother didn't tell me what good intentions paved." I heard my voice crack, and felt Dad's strong arms around me.
"Oh baby. I'm so sorry." He just held me and let me cry it out. Finally I pulled back and tried to dry my eyes with the back of my hand.
"Thanks, Dad. I just really need. . ."
"I know. Jordan, you may not see it, but those two would do anything in the world to protect you. I've known Nigel would as long as I've known him. And I don't need any proof that Hector would after. . . Go on. Just drive carefully."
"Thanks Daddy." I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and headed out the door towards Nigel's apartment.
Max. . .
That was close. I almost mentioned the unmentionable. I watched Jordan walk out the door and hop into her SUV. Part of me wanted to hunt Hoyt down right then and there for what he said. But the rational side of me sensed that he hadn't meant to say what he did. In the heat of the moment he just wasn't thinking and it slipped out. Didn't make the words hurt any less, but it wasn't the end of the world. I knew that once Jordan calmed down she'd understand ~ she probably already did and just wasn't ready to admit it.
I wasn't overly surprised to look up about 30 minutes later and see Woody walking through the door. I waved him down to the bar, but as soon as our eyes met, he looked down. Anyone with eyes could see that he felt just awful. He sank down on the closest bar stool.
"I'm going to take a wild guess and say that you probably know about my extreme faux pas of a little while ago."
"You mean what you said to Jordan?"
"Yeah. Talk about foot in mouth disease."
"Woodrow, I know Jordan. I know that deep down she understands that you didn't mean it. It just came out."
"Really? It sure didn't seem like it a while ago."
"She's hurt, but she'll come through it."
"Where is she? I want to. . ."
"She went to talk with Nigel and Hector."
"Oh." At the mention of Hector's name, I could see Woody's brain click back into the whole thing that set him off in the first place.
"Hoyt, I'm going to tell you something, man to man. And I want you to listen. And promise me that it never leaves this place. What I'm about to tell you stays between me and you. When Jordan's ready, she'll. . . Just promise me it'll stay between us."
"Ok." He wasn't totally convinced, I could tell, but I was going to tell him exactly what he needed to know. Jordan might be furious with me, but. . .
"When Jordan moved out to Los Angeles, she didn't know anyone. You already know she doesn't trust easily ~ and that's in a place where she's comfortable. She got a loft apartment and pretty much went between there and the medical examiner's office. She met Hector while they were working on a case together. A case that got violent."
"What?"
"It was a domestic violence case ~ those have always caught her attention. Anyway, the husband was obviously guilty but was willing to do anything to keep them from proving it. He saw Jordan one time at the police station when she was bringing the autopsy file to Hector. He broke from his restraints and ran up to Jordan. He threatened her. The officers got him back in restraints, but he swore that he would get her for giving the cops the proof they needed to arrest and the D.A. the proof needed to indict and convict. No one who heard him doubted his words. But the A.D.A. couldn't convince the judge of the danger that granting bail would put Jordan and the other cops in. He hadn't had any children and the only scrapes with the police had to do with domestic violence. So he was given a low bail and was out on bond within a couple of days. As soon as Hector heard about that, he went to his supervisors and told them they needed to provide protection for Jordan. The cops could take care of themselves, but Jordan was another story. The hatred this guy had for women made her especially vulnerable. But the jerk captain was more concerned with the bottom line and said they couldn't afford that."
"Oh my God."
"So Hector decided to take things into his own hands. He went to the morgue only to find out that Jordan had gone home, not feeling well. She hadn't gotten a car yet and didn't live too far from the office, so she was walking home. Ordinarily it wouldn't have been a problem, but it was a cloudy day and dusk was falling quickly. To get to her apartment, she had to go into an alley-like courtyard. Hector followed the path he knew she'd take. When he got close to the alley/courtyard and hadn't seen her, he parked his car and jumped out. As he was getting out, he heard a scream and knew it was Jordan's voice. He ran into the darkened area and found the husband holding her against the wall at knifepoint. He. . .he had already ripped her skirt off and was fumbling with his belt while holding the knife on Jordan's neck."
"He was going to rape her?" Woody's voice mirrored the emotions I felt when she called me from the police station. I think that was the first time I realized exactly how much he really did love my little girl. And how good he'd be for her if she'd ever break down and let him in.
"And probably carve her up afterwards, leaving her body God knows where. Whatever it took to keep her from testifying. Hector knew better than to yell, if he'd startled the guy. . . So he pulled his gun and moved as quickly and quietly as he could until he was at the guy. The first thing he did was pull the bastard's hand back and down so the knife was away from Jordan. There was a struggle, and Hector ended up shooting the guy in the leg. Jordan, meanwhile, collapsed in a shaking blob of tears. She told me later she'd never been that scared in her life."
"I can only imagine."
"Once the investigation was complete ~ it was pretty much open and shut ~ he and Jordan went to get something to eat. She wasn't really hungry, but he knew that after everything that happened she needed to get some food in her. They started talking, and this brother-sister relationship you've seen gradually developed. Jordan will never say that it was because she needed someone, but we all know that it was based on a need for some protection. It evolved over several months, and they developed little routines. Because of his size, people either underestimate or are intimidated by him. I'm not sure how the 'chili-cheeseburger routine' as they call it developed but in the midst of this whole relationship it did. But it's all in good fun."
"Yeah. Some fun."
"Woody, I'm not sure why they decided to do it to you. I know Jordan ~ and she'll kill me if she ever finds out I told you this ~ was. . .not happy that you just up and left when you were on the DL. She understood your needing a break, but she was hurt that you left so soon after telling her. She really does care about you. Maybe she just wanted to play ~mess with your mind a little. I don't know, but it was nothing malicious. But I did see her mope around here while you were gone. And I did see the look on her face when you walked out earlier. She might not be willing to admit it yet, but she's falling for you."
"Really? You really think so?"
"Woody, I know Jordan. Yes, I think so. If she didn't care about you so much she would never have let herself be so affected by what you said."
"I feel like such a heel right now."
"Not a heel, just a guy who's trying to figure out how to deal with my daughter. Hoyt, you're NOT the first guy to say something insensitive to her without thinking. You're just the first I've seen she's cared who's said it."
"Do you think I should. . .?"
"I think you should wait right there, farm boy." We'd been so engrossed in our conversation that we didn't notice Jordan and Hector come in the door. We jumped at her voice and Woody slowly turned around.
Jordan walked down the steps and crossed to the bar where Woody was sitting. I couldn't be sure how much she'd heard, but her next words confirmed that she'd heard enough. "I think we need to talk, Woody. Please? There's some stuff. . .some stuff that you probably need to know about. From my perspective." She gave me a look, but it wasn't the anger I thought I'd see. It was a fear and vulnerability I wasn't used to seeing in her eyes. But at the same time there was a strength that was pure Jordan. It was going to be hard, but she was going to do it.
"Alright." She held out her hand and Woody took it after a beat. I watched them move towards the back corner table Jordan liked so well for deep conversations. I made sure to keep an eye on them so no one disturbed them. Hector sat down in the stool Woody had occupied.
"Where's Nigel?"
"He decided this was a conversation Jordan needed to have alone. He did what he could to calm her down and realized it took someone who knew her better than he does."
"Oh. Ok."
"And Jordan said that it didn't matter. I was her friend and I could certainly stay at her place. Somehow she was going to try to make Woody understand."
"I think he will. As long as she's honest with him. He knows. . ."
"She told him about. . .?"
"I told him. He needed to know."
"Oh. Well, I'm sure she'll be ok."
"Yeah. I just hope that he doesn't do something stupid again. He really loves her and sometimes that blinds him to what he's saying. The emotions get in the way."
"Then they're a perfect couple."
"Yeah. . . Hey, you want something to drink? They might be here a while."
"Sure, a beer?"
"No problem."
I put a beer on the bar as he turned to me. "You really think she's gonna listen to him Max?"
"I don't know Hector. I hope so, but I just don't know."
. . .to be continued. . .